Well, time and again, the Dakar Rally has provided its fair dose of the spectacular, the crashes, and the photo finishes, and this year’s event isn’t the exception. Comprising nine stages, the race as usual injected all the excitement and more riding on the reputation as one of the harshest motorsport challenges. Rookie driver Dacia, who participated in the Dakar Rally for the first time, has shown some remarkable performances and completed the event by grabbing its maiden stage win.

Dacia and its entry into the world’s toughest endurance race—the Dakar Rally

Dacia’s decision to join the Dakar Rally is a major strategic event in the life of a Romanian car maker. Though it had originally been associated with delivering cheap, utilitarian vehicles, both the Duster and the Dacia brand demonstrated time and again that it could most certainly stand its ground in the cutthroat world of high-stakes off-road competition. This was the first Dacia Sandriders’ participation in the rally, and the crew proved that it could compete with the absolute world best.

Nasser Al-Attiyah: The Unsung Hero

Among the obvious causes of Dacia’s historical stage victory is also the car savvy of its pilot, Nasser Al-Attiyah. Born in Jordan of Qatari descent, Al-Attiyah is no stranger to the Dakar Rally, having competed in the event for a record 18 times. Al-Attiyah is no stranger to the event, having won it six times before, and so he already knows what to expect from the race. His experience and contribution have been great to the Dacia team, and partnering with co-driver Edouard Boulanger has already been a great match.

The Ninth Stage: A Triumph for Dacia

Dacia and Al-Attiyah set another record for the ninth stage of the 2025 Dakar Rally and became the winners of the stage. The crew completed the timed section of 357 km from Riyadh to Haradh, and Al-Attiyah and Boulanger arrived at the line in 2 hours, 52 minutes, and 59 seconds. This was followed, by a gap of only 2 minutes and 47 seconds, by another worthy Mini crew: Guillaume De Mevius and Mathieu Baumel with a Belgian star as their driver. Yazeed Al Rajhi of Overdrive Racing settled for the third position after the stage ended 3 minutes and 12 seconds behind Al Attiyah.

The Dakar Rally: A Marathon, Not a Sprint

Despite Dacia’s obvious stage triumph, the position ratings are still quite close. Yazeed Al Rajhi currently leads the 2025 DakarRally with a time of 45:06:54. Henk Lategan of Toyota lies in second place, a mere 24:50 behind Al Rajhi. Third is Mattias Ekstrom of the Ford team, 31 seconds behind Al Rajhi. Despite the fact that only three stages remain, competition for the overall lead and top three positions is far from finished.

The Desire of Nasser Al-Attiyah for Podium Positions

For Nasser Al-Attiyah, the stage victory belongs to the Dacia Sandriders crew, which means much in their race to secure a place on the podium. The Qatari driver understands that he has a challenge ahead of him but as the days go by, the gap to the leaders shortens to one stage. Nevertheless, given his past accomplishments in the Dakar Rally and the backing of his team, Al-Attiyah can rest assured that the result he will achieve will be one for the history books.

Conclusion

It is an excellent achievement for everyone on the team who has worked so hard, passionately, and with a lot of effort to bring success in this race. Motivated by crew chief Nasser Al-Attiyah, the team has shown that it competes with the best cross-country racing team in the world. As stated, with the 2025 Dakar Rally finally coming to an end, all spectators will turn their attention with anticipation to Al-Attiyah and the Dacia Sandriders crew to win an overall podium finish. In any case, the team can be proud of themselves as the future winners in the frame of the great history of the Dakar Rally.